Betting ads banned during live sport broadcasts

By Nick Toscano & Jennifer Duke

Several pay-TV channels will be exempt from the Turnbull government's siren-to-siren ban on gambling advertisements during daytime live sports broadcasts to take effect in two weeks' time.

On Friday, the federal government announced the prohibition on gambling ads during all live sports broadcasts between 5am and 8.30pm will begin on March 30, coinciding with the second round of the AFL season and the fourth round of the NRL.

Broadcasters wanted long sports like cricket, tennis and golf to be exempt from a federal betting ad banCredit:AP

The ban is aimed at reducing children's exposure to betting ads and will apply from five minutes before the start of play to five minutes after the final siren.

But the new industry code of practice, released by the Australian Subscription Television and Radio Association (ASTRA), includes a controversial exemption for so-called "low-audience" sports TV channels, including ESPN, ESPN2 and Eurosports.

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ASTRA has argued these channels provided "niche coverage of overseas events to a small number of highly devoted fans", and they would become unviable if advertising revenue dropped off.

"The principle is that the small channels would be disproportionately affected," said Bruce Meagher, Foxtel's head of corporate affairs and ASTRA board member.

"Very few children watch these channels."

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TV stations and the nation's major sporting codes had been attempting to secure permission to be able to broadcast gambling ads every two hours during so-called "long-form" sports events, such as the tennis or Test cricket, and multi-sports events like the Olympic and Commonwealth Games.

But the codes of practice released on Friday show they have failed in this bid, with gambling advertising prohibited from 5am to 8.30pm during all sporting event broadcasts.

Federal Communications Minister Mitch Fifield said he was pleased to see a close collaboration between industry and the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), which will make a real difference to the community.

"The Turnbull government has listened to the community's concerns about the amount of gambling promotions shown during live sporting events and we have acted," he said.

Gambling reform campaigners have been calling for an outright ad ban during live sports broadcasts that went beyond 8.30pm.

It falls well-short of the government's promise that kids and families are going to be able to watch sporting events free from gambling advertising being rammed down their throats.

Mark Zirnsak, Victorian Inter-Church Gambling Taskforce

They welcomed many of the changes announced on Friday, but remained concerned about the "carve-outs" for certain pay-TV sports channels, and were unhappy that advertising bans would not apply to sports broadcasts that were delayed by 90 minutes or more.

"It certainly falls well-short of the government's promise that kids and families are going to be able to watch sporting events free from gambling advertising being rammed down their throats," said Mark Zirnsak, of the Victorian Inter-church Gambling Taskforce.

"But hopefully the pressure will continue."

Alliance for Gambling Reform spokesman Stephen Mayne said some components of the codes appeared open to interpretation.

“The code is complex and some of the provisions are open to interpretation, such as whether Western Australian and South Australian viewers will face advertising earlier than the east coast," he said, "so the Alliance will wait and see how it operates after April 1."

The ban will coincide with the second round of the AFL season and the fourth round of the NRL.Credit:AAP

The ban does not apply to horse, harness and dog racing.

And the ban does not yet extend to online advertising, which will be tackled in a similar bill in federal parliament.

This has aggravated Commercial Radio Australia chief Joan Warner, as she said it could see gambling advertising driven online and away from broadcasters "possibly for months" before the same rules are applied to digital platforms.

Commercial free-to-air representative group Free TV chief executive Bridget Fair said it was "very important" that similar restrictions were put in place quickly for online players.

The live-sports gambling ad ban has been backed by the country's online corporate bookmakers, which said in a submission through lobby group Responsible Wagering Australia they recognised the public's concern about levels of gambling advertising, "particularly the volume of gambling advertising that is viewed by minors", and believed the reform was appropriate.

With the rapid take-up of online sports betting in Australia, corporate wagering companies in recent years have become large contributors to sports revenue, which the ad ban could jeopardise. Sporting codes have also raised concerns that restricting gambling advertising during live broadcasts would diminish the value of media rights.